From the Principal

Dear St Michael’s School families,

PRAYER

Loving God,

We gather this week as one school community, 

each of us bringing our own stories, cultures, and traditions. 

We thank You for the rich diversity within our community—

gifts that shape who we are and how we learn from one another.

Help us to create a spirit of harmony in our school: where every voice is valued,

where every culture is honoured,

and where kindness guides our words and actions.

Open our hearts to listen deeply, to show respect even when we see things differently,

and to recognise the dignity in every person we meet.

May our school be a place where we celebrate what makes us unique,

and where we stand together in unity and peace.

Give us the courage to build bridges,

spread understanding,

and be instruments of Your love in our world.

We ask this through Christ our Lord.

Amen.

80TH ANNIVERSARY GALA TICKETS NOW AVAILABLE

It's now on Instagram so it's time to get into gear and get your tickets for our Gala Dinner on 17th October at Chadstone Hotel.

TICKETS AVAILABLE HERE

Buy singles or get a table together but get in NOW!!

MOTHERS' & CARERS' DAY / HARMONY DAY

As many of you will recall, Harmony Day this year was recognised nationally in March this year. As that time of the year at St Michael's was incredibly busy, we chose to hold off this acknowledgement of this special day and tomorrow we have combined the celebration of our Mothers and Carers with Harmony Day. This year Harmony Day's theme was: Culture Connects us all!" This day encourages us all to celebrate Australia’s cultural diversity, promoting inclusiveness, respect, and a sense of belonging. Tomorrow our children will share stories and activities based around these themes and are encouraged to share their own family stories and traditions.

Tomorrow children may come to school dressed in colours that represent their cultural background OR they can come to school in their uniform and just add a touch of orange, the official colour associated with Harmony Day as it represents inclusiveness, respect and a sense of belonging for everyone. 

WORKS ON MOROTAI AVENUE

As many families would be aware, works on Morotai Avenue have commenced and this will be a long term process. This, naturally, will impact our drop off and pick up routines for a short while. Can I ask parents please to be mindful of this impact and plan ahead around your morning and afternoon procedures? This will require additional time in the morning to park a little further away and walk (always good to get your steps up!!) or consider car pooling perhaps. 

Again, I kindly request that you do not park on the top courts before or after school, until after 4pm. This is a safety requirement for the children in our school. 

EASTER RAFFLE

What a wonderful celebration was shared last Friday at our annual Easter Raffle! With lots of prizes on offer, we all waited with great excitement to see whose name would be pulled out each time. How fabulous to have a few additional prizes this year to keep things interesting and it just wouldn't be the same without a visit from the Easter Bunny!!

Thank you to all who purchased tickets and to all families for your work in selling them. A great effort from everyone. Thank you Jane Potter for arranging and organising the hampers and individual class prizes. 

MOTHER'S DAY STALL

A reminder to all our families that the Mother's Day Stall is being held NEXT FRIDAY, 8th May. Please be sure to purchase your tickets for these through Humanitix if you would like your child/ren to buy from this stall. See our St Michael's PFA News page for details.

CROSS COUNTRY

Thank you to our Year Three to Six students for their amazing efforts at Cross Country this week. It was wonderful to see so many push themselves just that little bit further to see how far they could go. Congratulations to all who qualified for the district level Cross Country. We can't wait to see you do it all again!

YEAR FOUR - SECONDARY SCHOOL EXPERIENCE

Our Year Four students attended Avila College and Salesian College this week to gain an expereince of a Secondary School day. It was wonderful to hear about their arts, crafts, sports and science learning acitivities throughout the day. The children returned most excited about meeting students in our local Secondary Schools

CAMP RUMBUG

Next Monday our Year Five/Six level will be off to Camp Rumbug in Foster. This camp is an adventure camp, set in the native forest in South Gippsland. The children will experience raft building, archery, the giant swing, canoeing, initiative games and the much anticipated Mud Run! It's a camp which really encourages cooperation and collaboration and hopefully takes children outside their comfort zones. We wish the Year Five/Six students well as they take this wonderful journey together.

CLASS FAMILY CONTACTS LIST

Thank you to the large majority of families who have responded to the nForma notice about Class Contacts for 2026! These are almost ready to be sent, which will will do early next week. If you haven't yet responded, please do so as soon as you're able through the nForma portal.

TERM TWO AND WINTER UNIFORM

Traditionally we transition to our Winter uniforms in Term Two, however we are expereincing some unseasonally warm weather at present. Please be mindful of these changes in weather and in these first few weeks of term make the appropriate decision about your child's uniform. Whilst children are not required to wear hats in terms three and four in order to play outside, it is still advisable in this warmer weather.

PREP 2027

Do you have a child starting Prep in 2027?? NOW is the time to be sending in their Enrolment Foms. If you haven't already submitted it, please use the link below to complete the application and submit it as soon as possible.

OPEN DAYS: We will be holding two additional Open Days this term:

Saturday 10th May - 10am - 12noon

Wednesday 13th May - 9am - 5pm

STUDENT LEARNING PORTFOLIOS

A reminder please to ensure you return your child's portfolio to your child's class teacher as soon as you've seen and signed it.

FINAL STUDENT DAY FOR 2026

Wednesday 16th December, 12 noon finish - We notify parents now that we will have an early finish on our final student day this year. Please note the date has not changed, only the finishing time. This will enable staff to gather in the afternoon of that day to hold their annual 'handover' to the following year's teachers; a process which can often take up to three hours to complete. We hope this does not cause too much inconvenience to families, especially with the early notification. TheirCare will also be notified of the early finish on this day. Thank you for your understanding.

PARENTING SUPPORT

Many parents may be aware that ParentZone in the Eastern Region of Melbourne provides support for parents in the form of information sessions, webinars etc. This one is specific to how we can tune into our children's emotional intelligence in order to better understand their needs. Please take some time to review the flier for this free, online session.

ST MICHAEL'S VEGGIE GARDEN

Thank you to 3/4B who planted some heirloom cabbage seedlings and cauliflour in our veggie garden. Hopefully they won't take too long to grow so we can harvest them all before next holidays.

This week our Year 1/2s in Mrs Hansford's class planted some coriander seedlings. A great time for these to flourish. Can't wait to see how they go.

UPCOMING ENHANCEMENT SESSION

The next school enhancement session is scheduled for Saturday 23rd May, 9.00-11.00am. We will focus on tidying up some garden areas and some minor maintenance works. Please keep the morning free for this session and a notice will be sent soon through nForma for you to sign up.

TEETH ON WHEELS REMINDER

Friendly reminder that Teeth On Wheels will be visiting our school for dental check-ups starting on May 27th 2026.

To ensure your child is part of this visit, please complete the consent form by clicking the link below:

Complete Consent Form HERE!

Once completed, the Teeth On Wheels team will Check your child’s eligibility for FREE care under the Child Dental Benefits Schedule (CDBS). If your child is not eligible, Teeth On Wheels is offering a special deal of $125 for a full check-up, clean, fluoride treatment, and any required x-rays (which can be claimed through your private health insurance).

Important: The cut-off date for completing your child’s form is May 20th 2026.

If you have any further questions, feel free to contact the Teeth On Wheels  (03) 9338 1191.

ADVANCED PSYCHOLOGY BLOG

St Michael's School has partnered with Advanced Psychology with a psychologist working onsite weekly. This link takes you to a blog with podcasts / webinars that deal with a variety of topics which might be of interest to parents and teachers. 

https://www.advancedpsychology.net/blogs

We acknowledge the Wurundjeri people of the Kulin Nation as the Traditional Custodians of the land on which we learn, play, pray, work and gather. 

We pay our respects to Elders past and present, and we honour the ongoing cultural, spiritual and educational contributions of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples.